Of course Jesus wasn't a Christian technically since he was/is the Christ. Do we see any signs that he was instituting a new religion called Christianity though? Let's check out some common "church" beliefs and see if Jesus ministry aligned with them.

Did Jesus demand that his followers adhere to a set of beliefs about his birth narrative in order to follow or know him? No. The gospel of Mark which is considered the oldest gospel doesn't even mention it. 

Did Jesus require that his disciples believe in hell? No, the Old Testament scriptures never spoke of hell, and Jesus only warned his generation of "hell" on earth... Gehenna, the valley of Hinnom where hundreds of thousands of bodies would be cast and eaten by worms after the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70. Here are numerous articles demonstrating Jesus never taught on HELL.

Is it really appointed unto a man once to die and then the judgment? Let me ask you a question. How many times did Lazarus die? Unless you believe he is physically alive today then you know that Lazarus died and was raised from the dead, but then some years later he died a natural death again. He died twice. Plus, what about all those thousands of people in our day who were clinically dead for some time and then came back?

So maybe, just maybe this verse has been used out of context.

Are we to think that God wipes away tears once we get to heaven, but we have to die to experience it? 

Actually, the teaching that God will wipe away our tears isn't a promise about heaven. It is a promise for now, that extends into the afterlife.

One of the great limitations that religion put on us is the idea that the will of God is some secret mysterious plan of God's that he rarely lets us in on. We struggle making decisions about the pursuit of our dreams because we are waiting for a "sign" that we should do this or that. Sadly, we never feel we are in the perfect will of God, and actually miss following our heart in the process. See the will of God isn't found in the Bible. It is found very simply in your own heart. 

Are Christians the only ones who "have" the Holy Spirit? Find out...

The great commission or the grace commission? Maybe you haven't heard of the grace commission? That is the era of history that we live in today. The word "great" commission, isn't found in the Bible. It was added by translators who put headings above portions of scripture.

This is a vitally important question. You will be shocked to discover the truth!

Does God give "second chances" after death? Without understanding the resurrection and the judgment, one can't give a definitive answer.

Is is true that sin can't enter heaven? What kind of damage has that caused us spiritually and psychologically? It's time to hear the truth!

If you don't stand up for Jesus, you are going to hell right? He will deny you access to heaven and reject you before the Father? Do you know why that's not true?

Mat 12:32, Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
 

Is it possible that the Church of our day has inadvertently participated in conspiring to hide the truth about Father God and who are his children? Would that be harmful to a person who is told they have to leap over certain thresholds in order for God to accept them? Would you agree that if, and that is if, God is the Father of all, and all humanity was a child of God, it would be wrong to hide it from them?

I used to know a woman who was born into a satanic ritual abuse family, which intermarried among the groups and purposely infiltrated churches. Her arranged marriage was with a man who pretended to be a pastor, while they performed rituals in the church basement at night.

Most of us were taught that the book of life is the book that you get written into when you believe in Jesus right? There was a song, “There’s a new name, written down in glory, and its mine, oh yes its mine. And the white robed angels sing the story, A sinner has come home!” Can I get an amen?

But verses like this in Revelation made us believe that if we mess it up, God will erase our name. It gives rise to speculation of eternal IN-security. So which is it? Names being written or blotted out of the book of life was a distinctively Jewish old covenant concept that had to do with the Law, not the new covenant. 

"You need to get saved!" thundered the fiery evangelist as sweat fell from his furrowed brow and uncontrolled spit leaped from his lips as he pounded the pulpit.

"You need to get saved!" wrote the angry man on Facebook to the one with which he vehemently disagreed. Of course it was followed by him saying "go to hell" in the next breath to the same person who denied his theology of hell.

Is this an important question? Absolutely. Who is in Christ completely kicks Western theology out of its box and reorients it back to biblical-early church constructs affirmed by even the church fathers. But it is more important than breaking out of some ivory tower theological prison. It sets our personal experience and our "knowing God" back to the simplicity of the gospel of grace. 

Begin by making God a monster, so that we become what we behold. He must kill and curse Jesus so that he can avoid killing you. 

I'm honored to travel to various countries around the world. I see different colored skin and many different belief systems. But a smile, laughter, hurt, desires, and love are universal. When we get out from under heavy religious threats and rise to a heavenly view of humanity, it is nearly inevitable to ask the question: "Is God the Father of us all?"

Face palm Jesus! If his love wasn't so profound, I would imagine him doing that with us today!

There seems to be a lot of confusion about Jesus' relationship with the Law and whether Jesus fulfilled the Law at the cross. The answer to that question is NO! Read on and find out what I mean...

This has to be one of the most confusing, fearful passages in the New Testament. It is used to scare the "hell" out of saints, and used as a threat against charismatics of all kinds. Some have gone so far to say that any gifts of the Spirit today would actually be demonic and rejected by God. But what does it really mean? Is Jesus talking about going to heaven? Is he saying that only those who perfectly do God's will, are permitted go to heaven? Is this a works salvation after all?

Did Jesus threaten to throw you into the fires of hell if you don't abide in the vine? Abide in the vine or go to hell! Stay "in Christ" or burn? Did you put yourself in Christ to begin with? 1 Corinthians 1:30 says, "It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus..."

That is really the implication of John 15:1-6 if we don't understand it. Many Christians and unfortunately pastors too, have misinterpreted this passage and placed a weight of fear on believers that they were never intended to carry. 

Remember the Justice League of America? Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash? 

From a very young age we have had the concept of justice deeply ingrained in us. A four year old knows its wrong for another boy to steal his GI Joe toy.

But if we don't allow the Bible to inform our hearts, we will miss what divine justice is all about! In fact, without understanding justice, we will not be able to accurately interpret scripture. Even worse, we will misunderstand the nature of God.

Yes, of course what happened at the cross was vitally important, but if Jesus was simply going there separate from us, it would have resulted in religion. 

Oh wait!! That is exactly what many people think. They weren't told that as a result of the incarnation, what Jesus did, he was doing for us us! Not in a separate sort of way, but as the Son of Man he represented all mankind. So whatever happened to him was happening for the whole of humanity! 

I recently sat with a new missionary friend who told me the story about a former Taliban terrorist he encountered in another country.

One night in Afghanistan this Taliban terrorist was planning another attack. Suddenly a stranger named Jesus walks into his room and sits at the foot of his bed. This stranger begins explaining the gospel to him in simple terms, with love and patience.

That is such a good question! I'm glad you asked. The answer is simple: He is closer than your very breath! This begins a new series of simple grace questions that many of us need answers to and those simple answers can very profoundly affect our lives.

Some worship songs, as sincere and heart-felt as they may be, subtly teach us that God is at a distance and he needs to be invited.

There has never been one moment of your life that God wasn't relating to you by GRACE. 

You were born into the great wide, eternally deep waters of divine love.

Did you know that the Law was largely Israel's attempt to shape God into their image and the patterns of the world?

Does the story of the rich young ruler teach that you are not to possess wealth?